Reversible handbag



. 29, 1963 H. J. TATELMAN REVERSIBLE HANDBAG Filed Mai 28, 1963 FIG. 3

- IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII INVENTOR- HARVEY J. TATELMAN A TTORNE Y UnitedStates Patent 3,108,627 REVERSIRLE HANDBAG Harvey .l. Tatelman,Oceanside, N.Y., assignor to Originals By (Ilaire, Inc., New Yorlr,N.Y., a corporation of New Yorlr Filed May 28, 1963, Ser. No. 233,810 15Claims. (Cl. 159-28) This invention relates to new and usefulimprovements in wearing apparel and accessories and more particularly toa reversible handbag construction.

For different seasons of the year, handbags formed of differentmaterials are ordinarily utilized, the lighter weight fabrics being morecommonly employed in the summer months and the heavier materials beingused in winter. Hence, it is usually necessary to have a plurality ofhandbags made from various materials for each season of the year. It isalso desirable that the color of the handbag be coordinated with thecostume of the wearer thus necessitating considerable expense inpurchasing and difficulty in storing a large number of handbags.

The present invention provides a handbag of reversible constructionwhich may be readily reversed to match two different dresses orcostumes. The owner of such a bag may, at substantially decreased cost,be supplied with a suflicient number of bags for her various wardrodeswithout it being necessary to purchase or maintain readily available anexcessive number of individual bags.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a handbag having theexposed parts thereof made of differcnt fabrics or of different colorsor patterns which may be selectively exposed to view by the wearer.

Another important object of the invention is to pro vide a reversiblehandbag formed symmetrical about a supporting shaft which may bereversed by merely swinging the sides of the bag about the shaft.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a reversiblehandbag construction having separate pocket closures for each mode ofuse and provided with means whereby articles carried in one pocket areautomatically transferred to the other pocket upon reversal of thehandbag.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a handbag finishedin contrasting materials or colors and quickly reversible in structurewithout removing the contents thereof to bring either of the materialsor colors to the outside of the bag.

th-er objects of the invention are to provide a handbag constructionbearing the above objects in mind which has relatively few and simpleparts, is inexpensive to manufacture and assemble, can be formed in asimplified manner in the form of flat sheets secured together, is neat,durable, compact, convenient and efficient in use.

for yet other objects and for a better understanding of the invention,reference may be had to the following detailed description taken inconjunction with the accomcompanying drawing.

In the drawings which 'dlustrate the preferred form of the invention nowcontemplated:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of the handbag of the present inventionin one of its two modes of use;

FIGURE 2 is a side elevation of the handbag having portions thereofbroken away to show the internal construction thereof;

FIGURE 3 is a vertical sectional View through the bag taken along lines3 3 of FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged view of a portion of FIG- URE 2 showing thevarious layers of material employed; and

FIGURE 5 is an enlarged view of a portion of FIG- URE 3 showing indetail the manner in which the handle shaft is secured by thelaminations of material.

amass? Patented Got. 29, i963 ice Reference is now made morespecifically to the drawings, wherein like numerals designate similarparts throughout the several views and wherein the reversible handbagconstituting the subject matter of this invention is shown generally at1% The main body portion of the bag is fabricated from two flat piecesor panels of durable material lit and 12.. Any material commonlyutilized for handbag outers may be used and it is contemplated thatleather, plastic, and fabric will be acceptable. Preferably each of thetwo pieces 11 and 12 will either be of different materials or ofdifferent colors or both. This is indicated in the drawings by thedifference in stippling. While the embodiment disclosed herewith employsmaterial pieces cut in an hour glass shape, it is to be understood thatany shaped flat pieces may be used in the handbag fabrication. The flatpieces may have a lining sewn or laminated to the inside faces thereofor may be left plain as shown in the drawings.

Each panel if and 12 is preferably formed with two die-cut rectangularslide fastener receiving openings 13 parallel to and on either side ofthe transverse center line of the panel and behind which are sewn orotherwise applied common slide fasteners 14. It is to be understood,however, that any other type of closure commonly used in this art may beemployed in lieu of the slide fasteners.

Two pieces of relatively thin material l5, 16, are cut to the generalside outline of the main body panels ii and 12 but are considerablyshorter than the panels and preferably of slightly less width. Thesepieces serve as wall separators and perform a function later describedin detail.

A handle construction is provided comprising an oval tubular plasticmember 17 which is rotatably journalled near the ends of a supportingshaft 18. The member 17 is retained on the shaft by press tit retainingcaps 19 which may also be decorative in design. While these caps arepreferably frictionally held on the shaft, they may alternatively bescrew threaded thereon. In use the upper and lower runs of the handlemember 17 are selectively used depending upon which side of the bag ison the outside.

During assembly, the wall separator panels 15 and 16 are placed face toface but on opposite sides of the supporting shaft 13 which runs alongthe transverse center line of these panels. The main body pieces orpanels 11 and 12 are then placed on either side of the wall separatorpanels with their decorated or primary faces directed outwardly. Welt-mgBill of a complimentary material is next placed around the periphery ofthe main panels and these panels and welting are then stitched to getheras at 26 or are alternatively joined by adhesive means. The wallseparator panels being of less width than the main panels are notstitched about the periphery, but may be provided with small tabsextending outwardly in the area adjacent the transverse center linewhich may be stitched along with the main panels and the wel ing. it iscontemplated however, that the wall separator panels may be stitchedabout their periphery if desired.

Two stitch rows 21 and 22 are then made through all the layers ofmaterial parallel with and spaced slightly on either side of supportingshaft 18. This shaft is thus completely enveloped and can rotate withinthis covering.

The resulting structure is in effect two closed envelopes, one on eachside of the supporting shaft 18, and each having an intermediateseparator wall comprising the panels 15 and 16 which terminate short ofthe envelope ends. Access may be had to both sides of each of theenvelopes through the slide fasteners 14.

A closure tab 23 formed of two pieces of the main panel material andstitched or laminated together is attached to the bottom end of eachenvelope as by stitching in with the main panels and welting. One ofthese tabs carries a male snap fastener element 24 and the other carriesa female snap fastener element 25.

As can best be seen by reference to FIGURE 3, the handbag can beselectively used with either of the two panels 1.1 or 12 on the outsideby merely swinging the envelopes and handle about the supporting shaft18 as shown in dotted lines. When in the desired position, the tabs 23are brought together and the snap fastener elements 24 and 25 engaged.

It will be noted that it is not necessary to remove articles in thehandbag during reversal manipulations and that due to the novelconstruction of the wall separators 15 and 16 which terminate short ofthe full length of the respective envelopes, any items in the handbag onone side of the separator will automatically be transferred to theopposite side thereof upon reversal and will be in position for removalthrough the opening 13 when slide fastener 14 is opened.

The wall separators which are present in the preferred embodiment ofthis invention serve several functions. Primarily these separators actas partitions in the relatively large envelopes to retain needed itemsof use close to the selected access opening; that is they prevent itemsfrom being displaced into the far corners of the envelopes away from theaccess opening. Additionally, these separators serve to conceal therather unsightly slide fastener tape stitched to the inside of theopposite body panel in order to present a neat trim appearance. Theoperation and function of these separators will be readily understoodwith reference to FIGURES 2 and 3. Very small articles in the bag, suchas lipsticks, keys, and the like will lie below the separators and will,when the bag is reversed, be automatically in position for removal fromthe other side of the purse. Larger articles, such as compacts, wallets,and the like will have a portion thereof extending below the bottom ofthe separators and when the bag is reversed, these portions may bereadily grasped by the user and pulled through. Hence these separatorsprovide ease in access to the contents of the bag after reversal and donot require complete emptying of each compartment as would be needed iffull partitions were utilized.

It is contemplated that the invention may be practiced without the useof the supporting shaft 18 or the handle member 17. In such case theresulting handbag would be similar to a pair of saddle bags but wouldfunction in a manner similar to that described above.

While I have shown and described a preferred embodiment of theinvention, it is to be understood that the drawings and detaileddisclosure are to be construed in an illustrative rather than a limitingsense since various modifications and substitutions of equivalents maybe made by those skilled in the art within the spirit and scope of theinvention as defined in the appended claims.

What I claim as new and desire to protect by Letters Patent of theUnited States is:

1. A reversible handbag comprising two envelopes closed on all sides andhaving a sealed common side, an access opening on each face of eachenvelope spaced from the sides thereof, and wall separator meansdividing each envelope into two storage compartments.

2. A reversible handbag comprising a pair of envelopes closed abouttheir peripheries and having a sealed common side, access means on eachside of each envelope, and wall separator means dividing each envelopeinto two storage compartments, the separator means terminating short ofthe envelope side opposite said common side.

3. A handbag as defined in claim 2, wherein the envelopes have oppositefaces fabricated of two different materials.

4. A handbag as defined in claim 2, wherein the envelopes have oppositefaces in two different colors.

5. A handbag as defined in claim 2 and further provided with releasablefastener means on the bottom of each envelope adapted to beinterengaged.

6. A reversible handbag comprising two outer panels, said panels beingin overlying face-to-face relationship, a supporting shaft interposedbetween said panels and extending along the transverse axis of thepanes, said panels being secured together about their peripheries andalong two lines on either side of and parallel to said shaft, definingtwo envelopes, and an access opening in the panels on each face of theenvelopes.

7. A reversible handbag as defined in claim 6 and further provided withwall separator means dividing each envelope into two storagecompartments.

8. A reversible handbag as defined in claim 7, wherein said wallseparator means comprises a pair of thin panel members of a lengthshorter than said outer panels, each panel being disposed between anouter panel and said supporting shaft.

9. A reversible handbag as defined in claim 6, wherein the outer panelsare fabricated of two different materials.

10. A reversible handbag as defined in claim 6, wherein the outer panelsare each of a different color.

11. A reversible handbag as defined in claim 6, and further including ahandle of closed, generally circular sllliape, said handle being mountedon said supporting s aft.

12. A reversible handbag as defined in claim 6, and further providedwith releasable fastener means on the bottom of each envelope adapted tobe interengaged.

13. A reversible handbag comprising two envelopes, each formed of twopieces of material joined at the bottom and sides and having a commontop edge, access openings formed in each face of each of said envelopes,and handle means adapted to support said handbag for carrying along saidcommon edge, said envelopes being foldable about said common top edge toeffect reversal of said handbag.

14. A reversible handbag comprising two envelopes, each envelope havingopposite face panels joined at their sides and at the bottom, saidenvelopes being interconnected with each other at their tops to define afold line, an access opening in each face panel of each envelope, andhandle means adapted to engage the handbag along the fold line tosupport said handbag for carrying, said envelopes being foldable aboutsaid fold line to allow reversal of said handbag.

15. A handbag as defined in claim 14, wherein said face panels areformed in two difierent colors.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS D.75,202 Wolf May 22, 1928 1,568,120 Wunthal Ian. 5, 1926 1,994,746 BannerMar. 19, 1935 2,021,789 Krauss Nov. 19, 1935 2,029,905 Banner Feb. 4,1936 2,053,464 Dalsheim Sept. 8, 1936 2,086,326 Goldberg July 6, 1937

6. A REVERSIBLE HANDBAG COMPRISING TWO OUTER PANELS, SAID PANELS BEINGIN OVERLYING FACE-TO-FACE RELATIONSHIP, A SUPPORTING SHAFT INTERPOSEDBETWEEN SAID PANELS AND EXTENDING ALONG THE TRANSVERSE AXIS OF THEPANELS, SAID PANELS BEING SECURED TOGETHER ABOUT THEIR PERIPHERIES ANDALONG TWO LINES ON EITHER SIDE OF AND PARALLEL TO SAID SHAFT, DEFININGTWO ENVELOPES, AND AN ACCESS OPENING IN THE PANELS ON EACH FACE OF THEENVELOPES.